PETE ON THE BEAT: Joshua vs Hamilton vs Someone You've Never Heard Of

Everybody has heard of the boxer and the racing driver. They are two of the most famous names in sport.

Unless taekwondo or speed skating is how you get your sporting kicks, then the chances are that you won’t have heard of Christie or Walkden.

They are all in a group of 12 VIP guests preparing for the annual bash known as the Sports Personality of the Year Award.

Joshua is odds-on favourite. Hamilton is a 6-1 shot. The others, alongside tennis player Jo Konta and cricketer Anya Shrubsole are 100-1 outsiders to lift the model of a 1950s TV camera that is the trophy.

It will be a champagne night on December 17, with everybody having a good time chatting with the rich and famous of sport at Liverpool’s Echo Arena.

But, 63 years after athlete Chris Chataway became the first winner, does it still have any meaning?

When it was first launched there was just one TV channel. Everybody watched it. It was the only sport you could get.

Now there are hundreds of channels and sport is everywhere. The days when we all tuned in to the Beeb for our sport are long gone.

And not to be outdone – Sky TV are running their own 25-day event of “best sporting moments” ending on Christmas Day

There is something else – as a BBC panel has already decided on the 12 you can choose from, you are limited.

Harry Kane is the only footballer on the list; there is no place for a rugby player of either code or any cricketer. And if you were thinking of casting a vote for Europe’s top golfer, Tommy Fleetwood, forget it. He’s not on the list. Could that be because golf footage is in short supply in the BBC editorial rooms?

So what does it all add up to? Is there any more kudos for the winner –probably Joshua this time – than if he eventually wins Strictly Come Dancing or the X-Factor? It’s a good night’s telly – but that’s about it.

THERE are times when football is about much more than the latest Mourinho ramblings, Wenger “blind spot” or even a Guardiola rant at an opponent.

It can sometimes be about the game.

On Saturday, Arsenal and Manchester United players did football a great service by reducing their often warring managers to bit part actors in a drama of the highest quality.

They provided a game that has already earned the accolade of “Match of the Season” – the best United performance since Sir Alex’s days according to one tweet – and nobody really cared too much what the managers’ after-match press conferences revealed about what they didn’t see or didn’t agree with.

Fan talk was all about the brilliance of United’s goalkeeper David de Gea and his record 14 saves, or of Paul Pogba’s sending-off which means he will miss the derby this weekend.

There was chat about how United are clinging to the coat tails of City at the top of the Premier League – and then more about the wonderful football played by both sides. And, one for the anoraks among us, was the statistic that Arsenal had 33 shots for just one goal.

Football talk about football made such a refreshing change – but can it last? Don’t bank on it.

This is local derby week in Manchester and on Merseyside, so while the rest of the game goes quietly about its business the rivalry between the North West’s big four will fill the pages of the nationals and hours of Sky TV time.

For the rest of this week, the stories on TV will appear under the headings of Jose vs Pep at Old Trafford or Klopp vs Big Sam at Liverpool.

What will be the Allardyce Effect on Everton, who are not used to winning at Anfield?

It’s going to take a repeat of that Emirates spectacular to keep the managers out of the news this weekend.

Meanwhile, a run of two wins in 15 matches has led to the dismissal of Hull City boss Leonid Slutsky, leaving the club searching for their fourth manager in 18 months. Applicants should be careful not to make any long-term plans.

FOR the best part of half-a-century, English rugby league has been damned with faint praise and littered with hard-luck stories from Down Under.

And nothing changed in Brisbane on Saturday, when Australia held on to the World Cup with a single try 6-0 victory.

It was brutal, full of passion, pride and high drama with the result in doubt until the last bruising tackle – all the things that international sport should be about.

In case you need reminding, the Australians have been the world’s best for decades and don’t they know it?

“I thought the game was somewhere around State of Origin standard,” was the patronising verdict from one influential Queenslander.

Would it come as any surprise to know that was the voice of Wayne Bennett who just happened to be the England coach?

If, as expected, Australia’s cricketers regain the Ashes, get ready for a new wave of Pommie bashing. It’s almost the national sport for millions of Aussies.